We used: double boiler, stove top, scale, bowls, knives and spoons.
This week we learned how to make infused ganaches and dipped chocolates. Basically enhancing the flavor of the chocolate by adding a complementary flavor and then enrobing them in a chocolate shell. We made: Earl Grey Ganache, Madagascan Vanilla Ganache, Coffee Ganache, Whiskey Ganache and Run Raisin Ganache. Normally, I do not like Earl Grey tea, but this ganache was fantastic! The Whiskey was also a favorite. But in fact, they were all good. On the second day, we tempered chocolate. We then made the bottoms and then dipped the chocolate. All of our chocolate were decorated. My team used chocolate shavings, chocolate shavings with ground coffee beans, white chocolate and sea salt. We also focused on shapes, logs, round and slab. The rounds and logs are piped. The slab is spread into a form, chilled and then cut. This was a busy but very productive week. We used: double boiler, stove top, scale, bowls, knives and spoons.
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This week the focus was Southern Italy. Food in this region was influenced by : Asia, North Africa, Greece, Albania, Spain and France. We made Pepperonata, Stuffed Pork Bundles, Caponata, Fresh Tomato Sauce, Orechetti Pasta, Tuna Fish-Palermo Style, Chocolate Almond Torte, Salad of Shrimp and Squid and Focaccia Bread. I was responsible for making the last two for my team. Since I have never cooked shrimp or squid, I was quite nervous. Those two things can go from amazing to horrible in a matter of seconds. But my dish turned out just fine. WHEW!! My Focaccia was good as well. It was thin but it had a crisp crust and a good flavor. In this class it is hard to develop flavor in bread because we have other items that need more focus. Our Almond Torte was good, very rich. But I think we could have ground the almonds a bit more, We used the following techniques: grilling, baking, braising, sautéing and pasta cookery.
The main focus on day 1 was tempering chocolate. Tempering is what you need to do to give chocolate the proper shine and snap. It sounds simple-melt chocolate, cool and test. However, if you are off in temperature, a lot of things can happen. Your chocolate may not set up properly. If it does set up, it can have streaks of be dull and cloudy. You can temper the chocolate two different ways: seeding or on a cool slab. If you are using the seeding method, you add unmelted chocolate to bring the chocolate to the proper temperature. With the cool slab method, you pour a portion of the milted chocolate onto a slab, preferably marble. You work the chocolate back and forth until cool and them you add it back to the remaining melted chocolate. I prefer the cool slab method. My rhythm is not quite there yet, but I am working on it.
On day 2 we made Dark Chocolate Burbon Truffles. In order to make a truffle, you first need to make a ganache. We piped the ganace into a round, using a plain tip. Then we rolled them in powdered sugar, a thin shell of chocolate and them we dipped them in chocolate. We decorated them with nuts, coconuts, white chocolate and/of powdered sugar. We used: candy thermometer, pots, stovetop, bowls, scale, spoons, marble slab, bench scraper and piping bags. This week the focus was on the food of Great Britain. We had a very basic but interesting menu. We made: Fennel and Red Onion Salad, Langoustine Souffle, Galzed Shallots, Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding, Pan Gravy, Mustard Sauce and Horseradish Sauce, Cheese and Herb Bread and Strawberry Shortbread. My main focus was the Cheese and Herb Bread. This menu used the following techniques: roasting, baking, sauce making, saute, garde manger and poaching. Our group did really well considering this was our first week together. Everything tasted wonderful. However, the Cheese and Herb Bread and Shortbread could have used about 5 more minutes in the oven. I thought the Mustard Sauce and Fennel and Onion Salad were fantastic! We stayed close to our timeline. I aam sure once we get used to each others style and work habits, we will be even better.
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AuthorKimberly-baker and food history enthusiast! Archives
March 2015
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